The appointment of Mr McPherson sees HBA Legal launch a dedicated occupational health and safety (OH&S practice), with Mr McPherson responsible for driving a range of offerings spanning all aspects of workplace safety and compliance. Under this leadership, the new practice will also provide expert legal representation in courts and tribunals, and strategic legal advice relating to claims and rehabilitation management.

“I am delighted to be joining HBA Legal at such a pivotal point in its ongoing expansion. The OH&S sector is a dynamic environment which demands a very technical and responsive legal approach,” Mr McPherson said.

“The services and solutions we offer clients are highly compelling and are provided through a unique operating and delivery model which places the customer experience at the core.”

Mr McPherson brings over 25 years of legal experience to the role. He is described as a recognised leader in workplace safety and employment law.

Commenting on the announcement, HBA Legal director, Nathan Hepple said: “At HBA Legal, we are constantly seeking opportunities to expand the scope of our legal services. The OH&S arena is naturally aligned to our existing expertise and we see significant opportunity to bring the unique legal approach that we offer to clients in this sector.

“Jamie is the ideal choice to lead this new service. His extensive experience and breadth of expertise will be central to our ability to grow our presence in this highly competitive sector.”

Mr McPherson recently held the position of managing director at DWF Australia. Earlier this month, DWF confirmed it’d conduct an “orderly closure” of its operations based in Melbourne, Sydney and Newcastle. 

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“Whilst we will part company with valued friends and colleagues in some locations, we retain a strong and respected team in Brisbane, with a renewed emphasis on our Insurance practice," said DWF’s chief executive Nigel Knowles at the time the news went live.

“...We remain committed to the Australian market, and wish our departing colleagues well as they transition their practices.

“As we approach our FY21 year end in April, we remain confident in our performance and have seen strong activity levels in our third quarter ending in January, and are enjoying a busy start to our fourth quarter. We therefore continue to view the future with confidence.”

Mr McPherson spoke to Lawyers Weekly in his MD capacity at DWF last year, noting how the pandemic was creating opportunity for lawyers who practise in workplace relations.

“The opportunities in this area [are] to be at the forefront of a whole new area of legal issues that our [clients] face, and their interplay with a number of social, economic and psychosocial forces currently existing in our clients’ workforces,” Mr McPherson explained at the time. 

“We are also encouraging new ways of doing things in the ‘business as usual’ space – carrying out a workplace investigation via videoconferencing facilities, advising clients on the workers’ compensation and discrimination aspects of COVID-19 through webinars, and generally partnering with our clients as new issues arise and require imminent management.”

However, despite the emergence of new business and marketplace opportunities, the onset of the pandemic is not without its challenges, Mr McPherson added.

“The virus has shown the importance of crisis management, leadership, and situational training. Once the virus is long gone, these will remain its legacy in that crisis management, leadership skills, and situational training for all organisations will become the normal, rather than the forgotten paragraph of a business continuity plan,” he said.

“These will become key pillars in any proper safety and workplace regime, regardless of whether the workplace is blue- or white-collar workers.”